A REWARD of up to £10,000 is being offered for information leading to the conviction of the person responsible for a macabre mutilation of a Chester man.

The Crimestoppers organisation hopes to persuade an informant to come forward with crucial details about the culprit who removed the genitalia from the body of 49-year-old Stephen Prudhoe.

Police are treating the case as a potential murder inquiry because Mr Prudhoe's death may have been triggered by something which happened at his home in Blacon Point Road.

Officers need to catch the culprit before he strikes again but remain convinced the answer to solving the case lies in the Blacon and Chester area.

Detective Chief Inspector Simon Price said: 'This remains a difficult and disturbing incident, baffling in its motive, and deeply worrying for the local community.

'Our enquiries, extensive as they have been, have failed to establish what motive there could have been for events in Stephen's house on March 9 or 10. There is nothing in Stephen's private life which indicates why this happened.

'For these reasons I urge anyone who can identify the offender, and who has not come forward yet, to do so - in confidence if they wish - so the tragic circumstances of this death can be resolved.'

Mr Prudhoe was found at his home by a concerned neighbour. His body had been mutilated after death, and the genitalia cut from the corpse and removed. The body part has never been found.

A post-mortem examination suggested Mr Prudhoe died of pneumonia and a heart attack, and had been in poor health prior to his death. But police cannot preclude the possibility that his death was brought on by something which happened in his home, particularly in view of the mutilation of his body following death.

DCI Price says the person responsible will be shocked and frightened looking back on what they have done and 'knowing what they are capable of'.

Cheshire Constabulary, which has liaised with Crimestoppers over the reward, is seeking information leading to the arrest, charge, and conviction of that person.

A single man, Mr Prudhoe lived alone except for his dog Milo, whom he would walk regularly. He was a quiet man, with a small circle of friends and no apparent enemies.

He had last been seen alive at 11.30am on Tuesday, March 9, at his home address, and was found by his next door neighbour the following afternoon.

Police remain baffled as to why he should have been targeted in such a way. Despite widespread appeals in Mr Prudhoe's neighbourhood of Blacon and the wider city area, nobody has come forward to satisfactorily answer these questions. Anyone with information can contact the police incident room on 01244 613 196 and speak with detectives working on the case.

Alternatively, information can be left in confidence via the Crimestoppers hotline 0800 555 111. Callers to Crimestoppers can make contact anonymously and will not be asked for their name and address, and if claimed, the reward can be paid via the anonymous Crimestoppers reward system.